Prusias in Harpers Dictionary of Classical Antiquities (1898)

I. King of Bithynia from about B.C. 228 to 180, though the date neither of his accession nor of his death is exactly known. He was the son of Zielas, whom he succeeded. He appears to have been a monarch of vigour and ability, and raised his kingdom of Bithynia to a much higher pitch of power and prosperity than it had previously attained. It was at his court that Hannibal took refuge; and when the Romans demanded the surrender of the Carthaginian general, the king basely gave his consent, and Hannibal only escaped falling into the hands of his enemies by a voluntary death.